From hoo-doos to Tetons

First off...I said this a while back but I must say it again.  Thank you for all of you who are reading and all of you who share our story/blog with others.  I have said it before but we started this blog for what we thought were a few friends and family so that they could follow our adventures (that was supposed to be 12 months long) and it was too much to post on Facebook.  We don't make any money or anything from this blog except a penny or something when people click these Ad things on the side of the page so we are up to like $1.03 over the last 15 months...woo hoo...click away!  We do this blog because we want to motivate others, to share how God works in our lives, to share how niceness goes so far and that it still exists, and we just want to share!  Well, here we are 15 months into our travels and we are at about 7,500 hits and we just hit our 48th country.  The last three countries to log on were Somalia, Latvia, and some place called Mauritius.   I forgot where Latvia was and had to look it up and finally found the last place also.  My point is that it is amazing that so many people from around the world want to read our adventures, see how God works, and that people keep coming back.  We write all of these countries on our prayer wall and pray for them and the people that log on .  So, again, thank you...please keep sharing it.


Now...you need to be forewarned...this post is packed with great stuff.  There really isn't much more to say except that and we are ready to move on!  I have also added some links in this post that you can click to learn a bit more about a few of the places that we have been. 
We left Flagstaff and headed to Bryce Canyon in Utah, you can see more about it by clicking here.  We were in Utah last year but we didn't do all the National parks.  We did Bryce this time and saw much of the surrounding area and loved it.  The kids earned another Jr Ranger badge and showed off their stuff and we had a great time.  We met many folks but one of the families that met were from Holland and we had a great time talking with the mom.  She loved the kids and works with a foundation in Romania (remember that Romania keeps coming up in our lives and we don't know what that is but are praying about it, anyway...) we met her whole family and had a great conversation.  We did some hiking and saw some amazing things.  Bryce canyon has a neat story as it is not really a true canyon.  It is really just a hole in the ground that had water in it and over time these  "hoodoos" formed and also some other amazing sites.  Zachary got some great practice with his new camera that he bought and we time marveling at Creation.  We also had a chance to meet a few people at the campground that we staying at.  We had to dry camp even though we were at a campground but this isn't a problem for us.  This campground had been around since about 1930 and didn't have any hookups so we didn't have anything except the water in our tanks and the power in our batteries.  This also means that anything that would plug into the wall along with the air conditioning does not work but we had no worries, we were there for about five days and loved it. 
We left there and headed to Salt Lake City, Utah.  We stayed at Hill Air Force Base and again, met some people there that we had some great chats with.  We had a chance to help a few folks and also met a recently retired Army family which gave the kids someone to play with and gave us some good adult conversation.  We were also able to see a couple of close friends from our Air Force days.  One of them was one of Kelly's old roommates and the guy who introduced us.  Yes, he started all of us this bliss that we call the Clon Clan!  Thanks G-lo!  We also had a chance to catch up and see Trey, someone that I used to work with and trained during my days in the Critical Care Unit.  We all used to work together, play together, go our together, you name it...we were together.   He is all "grown up" now and doing great things and had great family stories to tell and was very patient as I yacked about our adventure.  It was great to be able to share with people that we used to spend so much time with.   While we were in Salt Lake City, we went to the oldest work fam in the state and spent some time there.  We also went to the Great Salt Lake and let the kids float for a bit.  This was quite an experience; not only from the standpoint of having to walk all of the way out to it but when you are walking up tot he water, it seems that there is a dark band of something along the water.  As you come closer, you then notice that the "something" is literally billions of dark, tiny flies that eat the algae in the Lake.  They also like to come p on your legs just above your ankles which quickly freaks you out and make you run in circles hysterically.  They don't bit, but they sure do feel weird!  This was especially funny to watch once you knew what they were and you could get into the water (which had a stench of it's own once you got away from the flies) and turned around to watch other people walk down the beach to experience the same thing you just did.  I have to say that Caleb was exceptionally funny to see! 

Our yard while dry camping in Red Rock area

That's my baby girl.

We found a rope swing at a reservoir by our camping spot. 

We went to Bryce Canyon National Park and Eagle Eyes spotted a bike lying by a dumpster.  We took it home and parted it out and switched/fixed a bunch of pieces on his bike.  Great daddy day of teaching. 

The hoo doos.

Our Jr Rangers

"Eating out at Bryce Canyon

One of the few pictures with all of us!

This is a trail that goes to the bottom of the canyon.  It was amazing and the kids (and adults) did great!

This was at the bottom of that trail.  Absolutely amazing and lonely.

Our climbers

Caleb found himself a junior Jr Ranger.  We had a great conversation with this family who was here from China.

Another park on our vest!

Fly fishing at it's best.  Not just casting but actually catching something!

Bryce at sunset

This could be a postcard.  We took this from the top of a lookout point at sunset. 

The kids found themselves a friend from Europe with a cool hat.

Amazingly beautiful.  Doesn't it look like a fake backdrop?

Without going into great detail about almost losing my life, Zachary had dropped his camera lens onto the side of a hill...that was very steep, loose, and unclimbable!  We got help after some coordination. 

Some beautiful people in the channel.  This channel was dug by hand by settlers 100+ years ago. 

School moment!

Beautiful

Playing in the water.  Look at those tan lines!  We use sunscreen constantly by the way!

Now that is one beautiful hiker. 

Shrimp and grits over the fire and eating outside in our yard. 

One of the ways to get water back into you camper once it gets low. 

These guys were on holiday from Paris.  The camped next to us and we fed them. 

I don't know if you know the song "Big Rock Candy Mountain" and we stopped.  Kamryn is licking it!  The song is on one of our kid's "driving" cds  in the truck and we went right by the place where it was written about.  Read the lyrics here. 

Playing with neighbors. 

A herd on Antelope Island. 

Floating in the Great Salt Lake. 

This may be hard to focus on at first but the dark line is millions of small flies that eat algae from the Salt Lake. 

Kamryn loved G-lo!

A reunion!  G-lo (black shirt) introduced us 18 yrs ago and here we are.  Trey (blue shirt) worked with me and we all made up an awesome crew. 

Kamryn doing her duties as dog walker with a neighbor dog. 

Once we left Hill Air Force Base, we headed to a very special National Park.  We heard about this park when we in Canada and saw an IMAX film about the railway and how it was built in Canada.  Anyway, this place was mentioned and proved to be really neat.  It was called Golden Spike and was the place where the Union Pacific Railroad met the Union Pacific Railroad met in May 1869.  It was an amazing place with a more amazing story and I have added a link so you can see more by clicking here.    We spent a great deal of time here and to think that all of this work was done with simple tools in this short timeframe, years ahead of schedule, is outside my comprehension.  Anyway, the kids received another Jr Ranger badge and we headed to Gros Ventre (pronounced like "grow vont") campground in Grand Teton Nation National Park to dry camp yet once again. 

Kamryn loved the history and usage of this item.  It is a coupler for train cars. 

The place where the last spike was placed.  Amazing story behind this place. 

We drove through Idaho and some of the most beautiful country that we have ever seen.  I will repeat that it is quite beautiful.  Along the way, we stopped at a rest stop to get some pictures and found out that there was a forest fire near where we were headed and some of the roads were closed.  We weren't able to get any other information but we pressed on (even though the people that gave us the info turned around and took the long-long way to get to about the same place as us) to our final destination.  We stopped for the night at a county park in Idaho Falls that provided overnight camp spots.  Other people must not have got the "one night" message as some of them were quite "settled" but we have ways of making us feel more comfortable and safe in our home so we were okay.  We settled in and had to make a run to town but when we got back, we met a couple who had been in the park for nearly a week and didn't have a truck with them!  They had quite an interesting story...this place was a routine one-night stop for them but this time they had some truck issues and got stuck there as their truck had to go to the shop.  To top it off, the night before, they had their generator stolen.  We had a great talk with them and found that even through their many immediate trials, they had a great attitude and we had great conversation that night and the next morning.  We said bye to them after one night of being in the park and headed to Grand Teton national Park. Click here for more about it.    




We arrived at Gros Ventre Campground and this place was a madhouse!  Their were RVs everywhere coming in and going out.  There were people directing traffic because other people didn't know how to drive their own RVs...there were people everywhere!  Anyway, we got a spot, a very nice, double spot near the river and settled in.  I have to say that the Grand Teton Mountain Range is absolutely amazing.  I have seen many ranges in my days and many on this trip but something is different about these.  They are not "big" in comparison to the other ranges in the US but they are beautiful.  Especially because we have done so much exploring and have paddle boarded, kayaked, swam, fished, and hiked in some amazing spots that in view of these things.  We even met one of the locals who owns a store.  We had to go tot he Post Office because we had something shipped here to be waiting on us when we got here.  We went to the Post Office and walked next store to a small place and the fun began.  The kids instantly made friends with the two young men behind the counter and I joked with Mrs. Heather about needing a tomato.  She ran a drink/sandwich shop...not a grocery store but just received a shipment of produce and sold me a much needed tomato.  We ended staying in the store for quite a while and have a great chat and sharing some really neat stories.  More on Mrs. Heather in a minute.  So, we have done a ton of hiking here and spent some great time in many glacial lakes.  The kids have earned yet another Jr Ranger badge and we continue on our new quest to complete a total of 100 National Parks this year. 


We also headed into Jackson, Wyoming which is also known as Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  There is some pretty cool history.    We learned the difference between the two names when we got here but I won't go into it right now.  This is quite a famous town on it's own and we enjoyed the town minus the 1 billion tourists.  We found a great place to eat dinner while there, thanks to Kamryn (yes, we actually ate out in a restaurant but we have "eaten out" in many other places recently!) and had a great dinner.  While there, we saw Mrs. Heather come in and she spent some time with us ad we got a picture.  We also got to experience a power outage that covered the two states of Wyoming and Idaho.  It was a catastrophic failure of some part that means nothing to me and caused a power outage in two states.  We had great talk with our hostess and she had asked if we would leave our credit card number with her.  I said, "nope" and ended up leaving with a promise to call or come back and pay our pay and tip.  We tried that today and were told that our bill had been taken care of...quite nice...thank you!  We went and saw a shootout show in the street, walked though an art gallery, walked the streets of the old town and headed out.  Other than Jackson and seeing the mountain range, we have seen elk, buffalo, deer, moose, antelope, and pronghorn.  We have also seen a few original homesteads and Zachary had taken some rally neat pictures with his new camera.  We have talked about trying to set up a website for some of our photos and are even more inclined to do so now as he is showing great talent with his camera. 


We have visited much of this area and find it to be amazingly beautiful.  We continue to pray for the wildfires and those who are fighting them.  We will continue to watch in how it spreads this way and also the roads that we have to take as we head out.  We have met a handful of folks while we have been here in the campground.  One of the couples that we met have two dachshunds, and of course, Kamryn darted over to see them.  Well, this led to some really great conversation between all of us and they loved the kids.  They had a few issues with one of their puppies, and Kamryn showed her high level of concern the whole time.  She even went over and asked Ms. Lora if she could say a prayer for Copper and said a wonderful prayer for him and his parents.  It was cute.  They also taught the kids a new dice game and we all have a new game to play!  They took off and we traded contact information and the next time that we are through Salt Lake City, Utah, we will be sure to contact them.  We also met our neighbors right next to us; they also get to smell our food when I cook over the fire.  Our conversations started over the shrimp and grits I made and then again over the corn chowder.  Kamryn took them a large plate full of the chowder and they acted like they liked it.  All I know is that it didn't last long!  Kamryn loves to visit them and made them a paper cross today.  They were out for the day and when they got back, she took it over to them and asked that they all come outside and be together because she made them a gift and wanted to give it to them.  They obliged and she presented them with the cross she made.  Kamryn got to go in the camper and put it up on the fridge and was told that this was their first gift.  We also met another retired military family with the same camper as us; theirs is newer but nearly identical.  The dad is retired Air Force and we have been yacking quite often.  We also met another couple who set out for a one year adventure...four years ago!   One day we went to a local glacial lake and took the paddle board with the hope to use it.  It ended up being too windy so we hung out for a bit and "ate out" and met a young man that lives in his van and drives around the country.  While talking with him, I saw my kids helping a couple parked next to us get their kayaks off of their truck.  Well, about 25 minutes later, two of my kids are in their kayaks on the lake.  They had been invited to go out on their kayaks after they found out that we going to head out but decided against it.  We hung out with them for quite a while and talked and got to know more about them.  They were here from West Virginia and were obviously missing their grandkids and were very nice!  They were great and helped us to have a marvelous day in another really beautiful spot.  Something else that was interesting...on the way to the lake where we met these folks we saw an old hill slide.  We made up stories about it and then came up on sign.  It was the Gros Ventre Slide (read more here) and was one of the largest land slides in history on the Earth and was so powerful that it went up the hill that we were standing on and went even higher...and we above the valley!  It was really near to see and we stopped to take a picture of the sign. 

WE had a large package come to this post office in Kelly, Wy and we were afraid that it took up all of her space!

Itty bitty post office.

Swearing in for two special badges that they had books for.  This was not for the Teton badge but a centennial badge and another special badge.  They still had to do the Teton book after doing these two books. 

This is probably one of my favorite photos that I have taken.  This a house on "Mormon Row" in the Tetons with the Tetons in the background. 

This is the smoke from the forest fire that we watched each day. 

Making dinner together. 

Jackson, Wy touristy stuff!

The famous Cowboy Bar.

Seeing Mrs. Heather while we were out for dinner. 

Moose sighting!

Double whammy with the Dachsunds. 

Ms. Lora is showing the kids a new dice game. 

Adding two new state stickers that we have camped in. 

Amazing story that has to do with the power of natural disasters. 

They were helping them right before we were going to leave and then they ending up in them!

Out for a ride!

Daddy and Kamryn on the water. 

I turned around and Caleb was over talking to these people...then mommy made her way over also. 

Like a pro. 

"Eating out" near the Gros Ventre Slide. 

Even with all the wind it ended up being a great day with a very selfless couple. 

An old homestead near the Tetons. 

I don't know ifyou thing so or not, but I think this is also one of the most amazing pictures that I have ever seen.  These are the Tetons. 

Pronghorn...otherwise known as deer with crazy horns!

This is one of the places that we paddleboarded.  These are glacial lakes and were absolutely stunning and quiet. 

A picture with Mr Marty and Ms Lora...along with Schultz and Copper.   They were our marvelous neighbors while at Tetons campground. 

Earning the Teton badge.  We think this is #49 but we have to recount. 

Another glacial lake that we swam, fished, and paddleboarded on. 

That's my girls doing their thing!

Caleb has mommy on a three day tour!

This was hilarious!

Zachary's new friend.  He has never had a leech before!

After dinner snack in our yard. 

This is another way that we get water to our tanks when we are dry camping.  Zachary was learning the art of siphoning this day...a skill that every man should know!   He did great. 

Kamryn is presenting her gift to our neighbors. 

Me and my helping making corn chowder and steak over the fire. 

Kamryn heard our neighbor's truck start and ran out to tell them bye.  They found great amusement in this!  If you look closely, they are both laughing hysterically!

We have really enjoyed it here and we thought we would only be here for about three days and then move closer to Yellowstone but we have enjoyed it so much here and with the highway that is closed that forces us to drive through Yellowstone anyway, we are staying here for a week.  No problems dry camping at all!  We are loving it...who needs to be hooked up to city water and electric and sewer...not us!  We have marvelous ways of conserving water and taking very short showers when necessary (or in a bucket but that's only when we are in the middle of the woods and miles away from anyone else).  We also siphon water if we get low, cook outside, and use the bathroom elsewhere.  You learn to become very resourceful when you have to be!


We headed through Yellowstone National Park and it was an interesting drive.  Curvy roads and big drop-offs but we made it. That was not different than people stopping immediately in the middle of the road to see what they think is a moose and find out it is a goose or a log instead!   WE stopped and saw a few things and got stopped by one of the National Park Rangers because of all of the kid's badges.  She sent the kids a "special" badge and we have a great day.  We went through the other side of Yellowstone a few years ago when we went up to Canada so we are drove through the other part of it on this drive.  Anyway, we headed through there (some of the other roads were closed because of the forest fire) and arrived at a YWAM base south of Cody, Wyoming.  It is actually a CWAM base...Cowboys With A Mission.  We plan on being here about two weeks and can't wait to see what they have in store for us.  They will be/have been building a cabin for someone but we aren't sure of our duties as of yet.  We knew that it was a horse ranch and that it is a smaller YWAM (CWAM) base but we are very excited to serve even though we don't know what we are doing!  So, we are here now outside of Cody, Wyoming and were received well.  We settled in but we have so much to share from our entire travel day today to include the drive and some cool things we saw to include a story about a special 2,000 pound lunch guest and the falcon that decided to pretend our truck wasn't coming (boy, did he get his brunch interrupted!)!  We will fill you in on all of that next time.  So...


Until next time...